Shrimp Pillow

ABSTRACT

A pillow designed to be wholly and fully adjustable. It is achieved by a design that is both curved and asymmetric at the same time. It resembles a shrimp tail. This unique design affords for a rapid adjustment to a wide range of anatomical variations and sleeping conditions. Simply turning the pillow clockwise or counter clockwise changes the height and the width of the pillow until the user&#39;s neck and head is aligned with the spine in a comfortable anatomically correct sleeping position. The pillow can be made in small, medium or large and can be made in soft, medium or firm.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/897,850, filed 31 Oct. 2013. Previous Title was “Croissant Pillow.”

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

While using a conventional pillow I developed a crook (pulled muscle or ligament) in the left side of my neck that simply would not go away. I tried almost every conceivable configuration with my conventional pillow without any solace. I folded it over, scrunched it up, folded it in thirds, folded it lengthwise and found that for the most part it made my neck problem worse. Then it dawned on me that an adjustable pillow could be a possible solution. I did some patent and internet searches and found nothing. Then in a moment of inspiration images of a shrimp tail and a horn of plenty (cornucopia) flashed into my mind. Both are similar in shape. I immediately made a prototype and began to use it. Voile, my neck crook went away. Now I have very sound and uninterrupted sleep experiences. Several times I woke up in the same position I fell asleep in feeling fully rested.

I attributed this good sleep experience to the fact that the Shrimp Pillow is fully adjustable. The Shrimp Pillow solves many uncomfortable sleep experiences with a unique design that allows for rapid adjustments by turning the pillow which changes the height and width to fit one's unique anatomy almost perfectly. It is fully adjustable by design and can be maneuvered for anyone's individual anatomy and/or idiosyncrasies. The object of this pillow is to have a comfortable, relaxing and uninterrupted sleep experience and when sleep conditions change the pillow can be rapidly adjusted accordingly for optimal neck and head alignment and sleep comfort.

PRIOR ART

I did a patent search for pillows and there are many different designs. The shapes are undulated, humped, puckered, ribbed and sloped in various ways but they all appear to be symmetrical, i.e. the left side is a mirror image of the right side (as viewed from the front or top elevations) and they appear to be non-adjustable. My shrimp pillow is asymmetric intentionally designed to adjust.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This pillow is a fully adjustable pillow. It is roundish or arced and tapered from one end to the other. It is asymmetric. By turning the pillow and thereby adjusting the height and the width of the pillow one can achieve a near perfect fit for their particular anatomy with the mattress, neck, head and shoulders. The neck becomes aligned with the spine allowing for maximum comfort and proper sleep posture and spine health. Certain anatomical and medical conditions may be ameliorated with this pillow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 Illustration of a Shrimp Tail that shows the asymmetry designed by nature

FIG. 2 Front perspective with four vertical panels

FIG. 3 Front Elevation

FIG. 4 Top and Bottom Elevations with four vertical panels. These are mirror images

FIG. 5 Side Perspective (Low Side)

FIG. 6 Side Elevation (High Side)

FIG. 7A Parts with Vertical Panels

7A 1 Inside curvature

7A 2 Outside curvature

7A 3 Top and bottom mirror images

FIG. 7B Vertical panels

7B 4 Large end cap

7B 5 Small end cap

7B 6 Inside vertical panel

7B 7 Outside vertical panel

FIG. 8A Top Half pattern for a two piece pillow without vertical panels

FIG. 8B Bottom half is a mirror image of the top

FIG. 9 Front elevation of a finished two pieced pillow

FIG. 10A Top Elevation of a one piece pattern

FIG. 10B Front elevation of a one piece pattern filled and sewn together

FIG. 11 Backside elevation of one piece folded over and sewn together

FIG. 12 Illustration of improper use

FIG. 13 Illustration of the proper use

DETAILED WRITTEN DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The pillow is circular, curved or arced in its basic design. It is at the same time asymmetric. Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 it mimics the anatomy of a shrimp tail. As one can see it is curved and also tapered from one end to the other; large to small, depending on the direction one begins. The high side is approximately twice the size of the low side. Looking at FIG. 4 the top and bottom are usually identical or mirror images. The top and bottom puff out when filled and are bi-convex similar to a traditional rectangular pillow as seen in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6. These have vertical support panels as seen in FIGS. 2, 3 and 7B to give support and aesthetics. Looking at FIG. 2 if the pillow were superimposed over a clock or a circle with the large end to begin at approximately the 8 o'clock position, (240 degrees on a circle), the left hand side, it would circle around clockwise to the 4 o'clock position, (150 degrees on a circle) to the right hand side. As one travels from the left side (high side) to the right side (low side), the pillow changes dimensions and becomes smaller. The circumference of the pillow becomes progressively smaller from the large end to the small end, that is the height and widths become smaller. Referring to FIG. 4 the inner curvature expands and the outer curvature contracts and both curvatures begin to converge. This gives the pillow its asymmetry. This asymmetry allows for adjusting the pillow with a turn in one direction or the other. The pillow can also be flipped over to accommodate the curved structure of the face. The ends of the pillow are blunt. The inner fill material can make the pillow fluff further outwards and also adjust for firmness and softness. The relative dimensions can be adjusted to accommodate different sizes of people. For example it could be small, medium or large and it can be firm, medium or soft.

How to Make the Pillow

There are three methods to make this pillow. The first way is to make the pillow with vertical support panels. The width and height of the pillow is determined by the size of the end caps. The large vertical end cap FIG. 7B 4 is usually twice the height and width of the small end cap FIG. 7B 5 but can also be adjusted to a desired requirements. The top and bottom pieces FIG. 7A 3 are measured and drawn on tracing paper. The top and bottom of the pillow are usually mirror images of each other but it is not always necessary. The arc curvature of the inner side FIG. 7A 1 and outer side FIG. 7A 2 are determined by the width of the end panels. The inner curvature FIG. 7A 1 progressively expands from the large side to the small side. The outer curvature FIG. 7A 3 conversely contracts from the large side. The pillow thus becomes curved and asymmetric at the same time. Referring to FIGS. 7B, 4, 5, 6 and 7, the vertical panels are measured, drawn and cut out on tracing paper. The vertical panels give the pillow support and aesthetics.

These patterns are laid over cloth, usually cotton or other suitable materials and the patterns are cut out. The parts are assembled and sewn together. Fill material such as fiberfill, goose down, memory foam and cotton are used to stuff the pillow and after it is filled the final sewing takes place.

The second method is two pieces sewn together. Referring to FIG. 8A and FIG. 8B identical top and bottom pieces are drawn and cutout on tracing paper. These are sewn together and filled to the desired firmness. FIG. 9 is the front elevation of the finished pillow. Asymmetry is preserved pattern to be sewn on to the top. These are cut slightly wider and longer to compensate for the absence of vertical panels.

The third method is one asymmetrical piece. Referring to FIGS. 10A and 10B one piece is drawn out, cut and folded over then filled and sewn together. The same asymmetrical results are achieved.

How to Use the Pillow

Using the pillow is easy. Referring to FIGS. 12 and 13 for proper use and improper use. One would lie on the pillow (similar to a conventional pillow) with the opening facing outwards. If it is too high, see FIG. 12 Improper Use, then one would turn the pillow counter clockwise to lower it to properly fit the crook of the neck, see FIG. 13. If the pillow was not high enough then turning it clockwise would to raise it up. 

My revised claims are:
 1. The unique shape of this design. It is a roundish, curved and asymmetric. It resembles a cooked shrimp tail. See FIG. #1.
 2. This pillow is rapidly adjustable by simply turning or flipping it to accommodate a wide range of anatomical differences. It may be the first ever pillow designed for adjustability.
 3. (canceled)
 4. (canceled)
 5. (canceled)
 6. (canceled)
 7. (canceled) 